Born in Johannesburg, South Africa, van der Linde started his motorsports career at the tender age of eight in 2005. He quickly rose to prominence in his home country, becoming the youngest driver to compete on a national level in 2011 and then going one better by taking the honours of the youngest national champion just two short years later.
He would achieve even more accolades on the international stage in 2013 showcasing his talent by becoming the youngest-ever winner of the Volkswagen Scirocco R-Cup, and earning a place is Volkswagen's junior ranks for 2014.
KVDL racked up back-to-back European titles in 2014 when partnered with Rene Rast at the time, he became the youngest ever ADAC GT Masters Champion at just 18 - his success at such a young age has been rewarded with a role in Audi's factory stable since 2015.
Since then, the South African has filled his trophy cabinet across GT racing, including another title in the ADAC GT Masters, a pair of wins in the gruelling 24 Hours of Nurburgring, and a victory in the Suzuka 10 Hours, amongst more.
Selected by ABT for DTM's shift to sportscars in 2021, KVDL immediately put his GT3 skills to work becoming an immediate title contender, picking up four race wins and five pole positions to end a hard-fought debut third in the standings.
Broadening his horizons from sportscars, KVDL dipped his toes in the world of all-electric racing and Formula E at the 2020 rookie test in Marrakesh. A testament to his abilities, he posted the fastest time in the morning before ending the day in ninth - 0.8s off the best time of Nick Cassidy and in a top 10 that also featured current drivers Sergio Sette Camara, Jake Hughes, Norman Nato and Sacha Fenestraz.
As the official simulator and reserve driver for ABT Cupra, he is no stranger to Formula E action though, having raced for them three times in Season 9, replacing the injured Robin Frijns. His best finish was P16 in Round 2 in Saudi Arabia for a team that finished bottom of the standings. He was also set to drive in his home Cape Town E-Prix on the Cape Town Street Circuit but was unable to due to rear suspension issues affecting the team.
Kelvin returns to Formula E action in Season 10 for both rounds of the Berlin E-Prix - standing in for ABT CUPRA regular Nico Müller, while the Swiss driver competed in the FIA World Endurance Championship that same weekend.